Bulletin 392 - Friday, October 24, 2008

Mexico,- LUK, manufacturer of auto parts and components, has decided. to build a new factory in Irapuato, where they will produce clutch pressure plates, clutch systems and steering columns, among other pieces, both for the Mexican market and for export. This will be the second plant this Company has in Mexico; they already have one in Puebla, from where they supply original equipment pieces to brands such as Volkswagen, Nissan and Daimler Commercial Vehicles. This was declared by Bruce Warmbold, LUK North America President and Walter Baumstarks, Communications Director, in a press conference. For Irapuato Plant, there are other plans, and therefore the amount of investment or production volumes cannot be disclosed yet, "but we may say that the Company will not only supply the auto motor sector, but also aerospace industry", executives said.

Source: Noti-Ina

Cuernavaca, Morelos,- Due to the complicated economic situation all over the world, Nissan Mexicana's plant in Ciudad Industrial del Valle de Cuernavaca (Civac) will not hire 800 workers that had already started training. This was informed by Andres Lozano Rojas, leader in Morelos of Nissan's Workers Union, Sindicato Independiente de Trabajadores de Nissan Mexicana. "Economic recession in the United States is very strong and as long as the North American market does not react, there is no doubt we are in a very difficult situation. 650 Union workers and 150 non-Union workers will not be hired anymore", the Union leader said. Lozano Rojas also assured that "no worker at the plant will be dismissed, they were all candidates to be members of the Union", as a response to concerns by Union members who said they were uneasy about a possible personnel cut-down at the Company. Lozano Rojas said that the recruitment of 800 workers was part of a plan to start a third shift as of next November 3 at the assembly plant. However, due to the economic crisis, this will not happen anymore.

Source: T21

Puebla, Pue,- Volkswagen de Mexico has implemented a pilot program to reduce the use of cartons for the distribution of spare parts from their logistics center located in Puebla to dealers located in central Mexico. Thanks to this pilot program, they have stopped using 6 thousand 750 cartons per month, significantly reducing the impact on the environment caused by their operations. Through this initiative, the Company has substituted the use of cartons of 2 of the most common sizes used for spare parts distribution for metal mobile containers and returnable plastic boxes, which are shipped and monitored from their spare parts logistics center using a modern radio frequency identification system. The measure will allow Volkswagen de Mexico to stop using 81 thousand cartons per year, to which purpose they had to invest US$450 thousand in the development and implementation of this project. 73 dealers in central Mexico participate in the first stage, started last July, which has shown the great potential of this initiative, which will be implemented within the next few months throughout the 280 dealers network Volkswagen has all over Mexico.

Source: VW

Monterrey,- The Japanese transnational company Hitachi Chemical Co. will invest US$25 million in Montemorelos Municipality, where they will open their first plant in North America, state authorities and officers from the Company informed. Shigero Kudo, General Director for Hitachi Chemical Mexico said that this new plant is scheduled to start operating in June 2009 and its production capacity will be progressively increased in a series of stages. Mr. Kudo further said that the State of Nuevo Leon was chosen because it was considered the best option in logistics, being so close to the United States, their main market, and also due to the high quality of labor and infrastructure. The State Minister of Economic Development, Alejandro Paez Aragon, said that within five years 400 direct jobs will be generated. "With this we will continue with the integration of the chain of supply in the automotive area. This inauguration is a very important event, because we are also starting the industry's decentralization outside the metropolitan area", he said.

Source: El Financiero

Coahuila,- The international crisis has caused new damage on Coahuila's southeast region; Tal-Port, a company in the automotive sector, is closing a plant where 350 people worked, located in La Angostura Industrial Park, a subsidiary of Offshore Group,. Tal-Port used to manufacture harnesses for Ford vehicles at said plant, informed Miguel Hernandez, General Manager of the Industrial Park, but he would not give the exact number of workers now jobless; he would only say: "What I can tell you is that they are many". The news was spread yesterday in business circles, coinciding with the start of the 14th Annual Manufacturing Seminar, "Leave Experience and Be Your Own Guide", an international effort of Offshore Group, which gathered here since yesterday representatives from 17 companies from the United States, Canada and New Zealand, interested in investing in Mexico. Tal-Port's closing adds to the "discreet leaving" of Evana, a company that left Ramos Arizpe overnight, leaving a group of 80 to 100 workers "high and dry", even if they were only starting the first of three stages the Company had supposedly projected as their short, medium and long term program.

Source: Vanguardia

Mexico City, -- The first aerospace company was established in Chihuahua 15 years ago, when no one even talked about the boom the Industry is currently experiencing. Ever since, other companies have arrived here, especially in the last two years, to add to 12. According to Jose Luis Rodulfo, Director of Chihuahua Maquiladoras and Exporters Association, one of the main reasons that may lead to think that in the next few years the Industry could take a step ahead is the fact that there are already three companies considered OEM, i.e. Original Equipment Manufacturer. "The fact that these three companies have such characteristics is a signal that maybe in not so many years, aircraft could be assembled here", he explained. "It largely depends on the results some companies are yielding, but good results are being seen. There are companies which arrived three years ago and have expanded their operations because results have outdone their expectations". Aerospace sector generates five thousand jobs in Chihuahua and forecasts are that by 2010 this figure will be doubled. In addition, in the State of Chihuahua there are not only manufacturing companies, also engineering and design companies, as well as companies devoted to maintenance, review and repair.

Source: El Diario